Undergraduate FAQs

Degree level study asks for a similar time commitment to full time employment.

For a full time undergraduate course we recommend around 20-25 hours of independent study a week. The majority of our courses have around 10-12 hours of formal teaching time which you will spend in lectures and seminars.  Those undertaking language modules may have additional contact hours.

During your studies, you will find that there is significant variation in the types and style of assessment you are required to undertake. Alongside the traditional written essay or coursework and written examinations, you may find Multiple Choice Questionnaires (MCQs), online tests, oral presentations, book reviews, group projects and many other styles depending on the module.

Throughout the programme you will be asked to complete formative and summative work. All coursework assessments are compulsory and must be completed. Formative coursework is designed to help you learn through constructive feedback and does not count to your overall degree results. Summative coursework does contribute to your module and degree result.

All language courses are assessed by a mixture of written examination and practical assessment.

You can view the assessment method(s) for each module under Undergraduate Module Listings. 

Years One, Two and Three are common to all programmes and you may have a Fourth year if you decide to take a year abroad.

In each year of your degree you will take a number of individual modules (or course units) normally valued at 15 or 30 credits, adding up to a total of 120 credits for the year.

Modules are assessed in the academic year in which they are taken. The balance of compulsory and optional modules varies from programme to programme and year to year. A full structure for each degree programme can be found in the Programme Handbooks.

 A 30-credit module is considered equivalent to 15 credits in the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS).

SSEES students can spend their year abroad at countries from across the Central and Eastern European region. Students studying at one of our EU partner universities benefit from the European Union Erasmus scheme which offers some funding towards the year abroad costs.

For students on degree programmes offered within Languages & Culture, preparation for your year abroad has involved intensive language teaching during the first two years of your degree. This will continue during the year abroad. For students on other programmes, knowledge of the local language, while advantageous, is not usually essential, as the discipline-based taught courses at our partner universities are delivered in English.

You are very welcome to visit the school. You can book an appointment with one of our staff in the Admissions office by email.

For masters programmes contact maadmissions@ssees.ucl.ac.uk and for undergraduate programmes contact ugadmissions@ssees.ucl.ac.uk.

As one of the world’s leading institutions for research and teaching on Russia, the Baltics, and Central, Eastern and South-East Europe all of our degree programmes will relate to the region in various ways.

Although there will be no separate European studies per se as part of the programme, the region will run throughout a majority of the modules studied. Often we use the region as a case study to exemplify the methods and theories that you will be learning.

Some modules will be more regionally focussed than others and we do, to some extent, teach on a comparative basis with other parts of the globe. Students will benefit from an enhanced knowledge of markets and practices in this region.

We suggest you review the structure and modules of your chosen course carefully which are outlined in the Programme Handbooks.

This will depend on your degree and the structure of this. Many of our programmes allow for you to take a small number of credits from outside the school, although we encourage students to select from the varied options available at SSEES under our Module Listings.  If you wish to take modules outside SSEES, you will have to contact the relevant outside department (e.g. Anthropology, Geography etc) during registration week in order to sign up for a module in that department. Each department has their own procedure for admitting students to their modules. You may also need to obtain permission from your Programme Coordinator,

If you do choose to sign up for modules outside SSEES, it is your responsibility to check that your outside modules do not involve timetable clashes with your modules in SSEES. Please be aware that modules across the College fill up rapidly, so it is a good idea to choose your modules as soon as possible in registration week.

At SSEES we offer a broad range of languages that students can choose from:

• Czech
• Finnish
• Hungarian
• Polish
• Romanian
• Russian
• Serbian/Croatian
• Slovak
• Slovene

More information can be found on our Languages page. 

If you are unsure if you meet the entry requirements for a degree programme, you can contact a member of the Admissions Team at SSEES or email ugadmissions@ssees.ucl.ac.uk.

UCL offers a wide range of accommodation available. First year students are guaranteed accommodation if they meet the following criteria:

• Accommodation applications are made no later than 31 May of the year of entry;
• Students receive and firmly accept an offer of a place on a degree programme at UCL, conditional or unconditional, by 31 May of the year of entry, and;
• Students have not previously lived or studied in the London area (i.e. within the M25) as a student at a Higher Education institution.

UCL offers self-catered and catered accommodation and room type is allocated randomly based on the preferences you indicate in your application including budget and distance from UCL’s main campus. This allows UCL to successfully allocate 89% of students to the room type they have selected and ensures the process is fair to all applicants.

More information on UCL Halls of Residence can be found on our Accommodation page.

Yes - the school will be sending out readings lists during the summer to all students who have accepted UCL as their firm offer.

All applicants studying at another higher education institution, including those who wish to transfer to a full-time degree programme at UCL, whether to commence a new programme of study, or to enter direct into the second year of a degree programme, must apply through UCAS and not directly to UCL.

Regardless of where applicants are applying from, they must submit their UCAS application by the dates published by UCAS.

We advise you contact the SSEES Admissions Manager, Lisa Walters, in advance to see if a transfer may be possible; this is dependent on space and whether your current studies align with our Year 1 curriculum. Second year transfers are relatively uncommon and most students are asked to enter Year 1 of our programme.

All other students are not permitted to be formally registered for a programme of study at UCL at the same time as being formally registered (or re-sitting examinations) for another programme of study at UCL or any other Higher Education Institution.

Students can accept an offer of a place from UCL when they are still formally registered with another Higher Education Institution, or if they are re-sitting examinations. However, they may not formally register with UCL until they are no longer registered with another institution, having graduated or left.